Intraconference transfers—and whether they should get immediate eligibility at their new school—has always been a sticky subject.

Should players at one SEC school be able to transfer to another without having to sit out?

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart was asked that very question during Tuesday’s post-practice Zoom session with reporters.

He was surprisingly forthcoming with his response.

“Do you want an honest answer on that? I can give you the stock answer, which is indifferent. But as every coach in the SEC wouldn’t admit, it’s based on who they can get, with how they want that rule,” Smart said. “If you have a guy out there who can change your team, that’s what you want. You want it to change, right? If you're playing against them, you may not want it to change. It’s a selfish world out there, and every guy is trying to do what gives his team the best chance to win. But it really should be based on what’s best for the players, and what’s best for the longevity of our conference.”

Earlier this year, the SEC altered its rules to allow for immediate eligibility for interconference transfers, in light of the coronavirus pandemic.

Previously, the SEC mandated that players transferring within the league had to sit out a year before becoming eligible.

The NCAA is currently considering whether to allow a one-time transfer without penalty. A decision is expected in January.

Monday night brought reports that LSU tight end Arik Gilbert was considering a transfer, closer to home. The Bulldogs were one of his final choices before signing with the Tigers a year ago. Presumably, Smart would welcome his arrival.

Although NCAA rules prohibit Smart from discussing the situation, he conceded it's a tricky one.

"Everybody in the public would say what’s best for the player, to be able to go and play interconference. Some inherent part of me says, ‘I just don’t know if my son was at a place and he was not playing, or he was disgruntled and I would want to know why it was that way.’ Then I would tell him, ‘You need to try harder. You need to do better. You need to continue to work," Smart said. "You need to continue to grow because something about that in this world, I think makes you a better person. Sometimes we don’t demand kids to do that, and we give them the easy way out. You know what? They can find a lot of other schools that will let them go to them. It’s a really tough situation because I don’t say that from the guys that left here—it’s not about that for me.

"It’s about what’s best for our conference, what’s best for our programs, what’s best for the game of football, and what’s best for the kids. That’s why you guys like to talk about it because there’s no perfect or right answer.”

With Trey Hill out with a meniscus injury, Smart said Warren Ericson and Sedrick Van Pran are both competing to be the starting center Saturday at Missouri (Noon, SEC Network).

"Both of those guys are working there and doing a good job,” said Smart, who revealed Hill had hoped to put the surgery off until the season was complete.

Unfortunately, it wasn't to be.

“Trey had a meniscus he was going to have to have repaired after the season, and then, I guess it was last week some time, he injured his other meniscus,” Smart said. “So he went ahead and got both of them cleaned up. He's good. He's already off the scooter, moving around, getting ready hopefully to bounce back. It's a clean-up more than it was a major surgery. So, we're hopeful to get him back at some point. Those other guys are working really hard and doing a good job out there."

Smart said safety Richard LeCounte (concussion, ribs) is unlikely to play Saturday at Missouri.

"Richard’s taken probably 25 percent of his reps that he'd normally take,” Smart said. “He’s probably not ready. I'd say he’s the furthest, from those guys.”

However, the safety is working hard.

“I think he likes being back out there. He wants to get out there for more reps. It’s hard, because for every rep you give him, that’s somebody else that doesn’t get one, and you don’t get to prepare a younger player,” Smart said. “If he were ready to play, we’d want to give him all the reps. But he has to work himself back. He's still not 100 percent. I love that he is pushing through that. A lot of times you have a talented player who is uncomfortable going back, and not being his old self.

“He’s never going to be his old self until he pushes through this kind of growing pain. He’s got to get through to get back. He's pushing his way back. I just don’t think he’s going to be ready this week.”

The news was much better on running back Kendall Milton (knee) and nose guard Jordan Davis (elbow).

“Kendall’s in a black jersey, done really well. I'd not say he is full speed, but I would say he is pretty close. Hopefully going to be able to play,” Smart said. “And Jordan’s looked good. What Jordan’s done a really good job of is being in conditioning shape. So, he’s practiced really hard and looked good.”

Smart on what’s been the most impressive about his team’s ability to follow Covid protocols: “I guess the most impressive thing has been the negative tests and the fact that we haven’t had a lot of positives. Ron Courson has reminded me many times, you are only as good as your last test. And it can change so quick, and it can shut things down so quick. No. 1, we have a really good facility. No. 2, we have unbelievable staff here, of cleaning it and keeping it clean. I am not saying other places don't, and that's why they have their problem. But I think our community has done a really good job, and we've done a really good job inside our building. Credit goes to our players, too. They’ve obviously done a pretty good job of taking care of each other and not exposing each other.”

Smart on how Dan Lanning has handled some of the defensive challenges: “He hits it head on. He addresses it like any great coach would. As a young coordinator, you go through that and you own up to things you could do better, and you confront and demand things that the players could do better. But we're never going to be a program or staff that points blame at players. That's not what we're about. You go back to work. and try to find a better way to do it. That's what he has done. He is really good at what he does.

“He’s a great motivator, he’s a great leader. He's got a really good defensive staff here, so it's not just Dan. We have about seven or eight guys over there who work really hard at getting information, relationship with players, motivating players, finding new ideas, finding new schemes other people are doing, and Dan benefits from that staff. But he's the face, and he is the leader of that group that stands in front of them. He takes ownership when he needs to take ownership, and he challenges when he needs challenge.”

Smart on how the transfer portal has impacted recruiting players: “It hasn't changed anything. Nothing changed. I was always considerate and nice when a guy didn't come, anyway. I don't know if there was a portal when [Demetris Robertson] came out, but I wasn't mad at D-Rob when he didn't come (as a freshman). I told him congratulations, best wishes, and let us know if you ever need help with anything. It never changed because there was a portal. The portal was just a public way of saying, 'I am a free agent.' The way we recruit is the way we recruit. If they choose to go in the portal, great, and if there are kids in the portal we had a relationship with, then we are going to communicate with them if we're interested. It doesn't change the way we recruit them.”

Georgia is ninth in this week's College Football Playoff Rankings.

The Bulldogs are still expected to earn their fourth straight News Years Six Bowl bid, should they beat Missouri, then Vanderbilt next week.